Maybe There's Hope
by WordsSpillFromMyVeins
Summary: Just a sweet, little Mulder family moment.
1. What's Past Is Prologue

The Crashdown Motel  
Roswell, New Mexico.  
May 22nd, 2002  
11:21pm

In a slightly dingy (but still one of the better out of the hundreds they had stayed in over the years) motel room. Scully was laying in bed, while Mulder was sitting on the floor beside it. The last 48hrs had involved an insane and dangerous mission to free him from the Governments web of lies and cover ups, for a murder he never committed. And a cross country trek, to get out from under the long arm of the FBI's reach. They'd had to give up their jobs, their friends and their old lives. They had to start again but they would be together this time...

 _"Why would I accept defeat? Why would I accept it if you won't? Mulder, you say that you've failed, but you only fail if you give up. And I know you. You can't give up. It's what I saw in you when we first met. It's what made me follow you. Why I'd do it all over again"_ said Scully, with all the love and admiration she held for him and seeing the darkness slowly, start to roll over him.

 _"Look what it's gotten you..."_ retorted Mulder, he had always felt that she had missed out and lost so much, by standing by his side all these years. Now that she had given up William, and gone all in with him, he worried that he was dragging her back into a life that she didn't deserve.

 _"And what has it gotten you? Not your sister. Nothing that you've set out for. But you won't give up, even now. You've always said that you wanna believe. But believe in what, Mulder? If this is the truth that you've been looking for, then what is left to believe in?"_ asked Scully, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

 _"I wanna believe that... the dead are not lost to us, that they speak to us, as part of something greater than us, greater than any alien force. And if you and I are powerless now, I wanna believe that if we listen to what's speaking, it can give us the power to save ourselves"_ confessed Mulder, thinking about all of the people they had lost.

 _"Then we believe the same thing"_ agreed Scully, and Mulder reached for the gold cross (that represented and held her faith) around her neck. Deciding in that moment, that hope and Scully were his Truth now.

He pressed his thumb to her lips and she kissed it, softly.

Mulder crawled into bed with Scully, pulling her into a his warm embrace.

 _"Maybe there's hope"_ whispered Mulder, to no one in particular and the entire Universe.

It was a sort of prayer for their future. For the first time in a really long time, he felt calm and ready to move on with his life.

Scully was in his arms... and that was all he needed in his life now.

 **Sixteen Years Later**

After going on the run from the many enemies that they had encountered in their search for the Truth, including a cabal called the Syndicate (which was hell bent on breeding human/alien hybrids) and the higher ups at the FBI. They had created a peaceful life for themselves in rural Virginia. In the Ordinary House. Until the darkness had finally found them again, tearing them apart and breaking both of their hearts in the process. In 2016, when a billionaire who believed in EBEs came knocking, they were led back to each other and the FBI. But they still didn't have their son. Their miracle child, William. Scully had given William up (to protect him). Telling Mulder that she had given away the son they fought so hard to have... had broken her, almost beyond repair. William was looking for them, for the mother that came to him in his dreams, of so often. For the Doctor, with the soulful, blue eyes and fiery red hair. By the time William found Scully and Mulder, everything was against them. You can only fight the future for so long, before you realise that the cards were stacked against you from the beginning. Finding William, to only lose him all over again was the hardest thing both of them had ever gone through in their lives. But they knew he would want them to finally start their lives together. And remember him, always! They would always have each other and that could be enough now.

Like with William. They'd have to wait but just like their miracle, hope would come... when they least expected it.


	2. There's Always Hope

**Nine Months Later**

Washington Memorial Hospital  
Washington, D.C.  
December 18th, 2018.  
10:13am

Scully was sitting up and leaning forward on a hospital bed, in a brightly lit operating theatre. Mulder was crouched in front of her, holding her hands in his as a nurse was adminstering the spinal block for her C-section. When Scully had found out she was pregnant, it was decided that a scheduled elective C-section would be best, for both her and their baby. Before they had all entered OT3, they handed Mulder a pale purple paper smock and he put it on. He felt ridiculous in it, but it was necessary to keep infections away from Scully and their newborn baby.

Mulder was a middle aged man having a baby. "Middle Aged" was being kind and he knew that, he was old enough to be a grandfather at this point in his life and maybe if they had met earlier, had expressed their feelings for each other sooner... they might of both been grandparents at this point instead of brand new parents, all over again.

"Ouch!", bristled Scully.

The large spinal block needle really had stung going in and she flinched just a little, even though she wasn't supposed to.

"Sorry about that, Dana. It's done now. And your daughter should be along soon. Excited?", asked Nurse Jo.

Nurse Jo lightly patted the spot, on Scully's back, where the needle used to be.

"Absolutely", beamed Mulder.

"I think, I'm just ready to have her out here... with us", answered Scully.

Mulder and Nurse Jo, helped Scully lay back down on the bed. Jo walked away from Scully and Mulder, to assist the Doctor and other nurses in the theatre who were prepping her for surgery, pulling up the curtain and covering her belly in iodine.

"Mulder?", Scully breathed out.

The Doctor used a surgical knife to carefully cut across her lower abdomen, through the fat and into her womb.

"I'm here, Scully. I'm not going anywhere", Mulder said reassuringly.

Mulder was sitting on a chair that had wheels, right next to Scully's head. She reached out her tiny hand, which was trembling. He turned her hand and kissed the inside of her wrist, before cupping it in both of his and rubbing it to keep her warm and to distract himself.

The theatre actually was cold, but Scully's whole body was trembling because of the shock.

"I... I can't believe we're doing this, again", Scully laughed (very carefully).

Scully gently turned her head to look at him, and smiled through the trembling and discomfort she was feeling.

"At least you're in a clean, well lit hospital... with capable Doctors instead of an abandoned old west town in Democrat Hot Springs, Georgia. Right?", Mulder grinned.

Make no mistake, he would always be grateful that Agent Reyes was with Scully the last time she gave birth but he was also grateful that she was in a hospital this time, and that he was there with her. Missing the birth of his first born son, even if it was to protect him had always weighed heavy on Mulder's conscience.

"Right", Scully bit her bottom lip.

Scully felt a really weird but dull yanking on her insides, it was one of the strangest feelings. There wasn't a hint pain (which she was thankful for) but logically, she knew they were cutting her open and removing their child from her womb.

Right now, Mulder was feeling incredibly incapable of helping to reduce her obvious discomfort and it was killing him.

"Hey...", Mulder said.

And brushed a stray tear from her cheek.

"Ow. Yes?", Scully winced.

"I love you, you know. I always have, and always will", Mulder leaned in and kissed just above Scully's right eyebrow.

"I... know. Love you- Sorry, this... feels... really weird", Scully closed her eyes and took another breath.

"Yeah. Honestly, I'm trying not to think about. I really don't want to throw up in front of you, or them. It'd be embarrassing and not a good story for the birth of our kid", Mulder pointed to beyond the curtain and smiled weakly.

Mulder had always had the overwhelming desire to protect her from harm, and felt like he failed on countless occasions, not because she was weak or vunerable but because he loved her and that meant wanting her to be happy and safe. And with him. Forever.

"Dad? Do you wanna see your daughter come into the world", Nurse Jo nudged Mulder and he stood up.

Mulder peeked over the modesty curtain, which was really just there to make sure you didn't freak out and throw up and watched as the Doctor pulled his second child from the barren womb of the only woman that he had and would ever love, and cut the cord.

"Jesus, Scully. Whoa. I said I wouldn't puke, right?", Mulder was staring at his newborn daughter, as the Doctor handed the tiny, pink, wriggling naked form to Nurse Jo,

"Mulder, is she okay? I can't hear- why isn't she crying?", Scully panicked.

Deep down, she knew babies didn't always cry when immediately welcomed into the world but she was terrified that she might lose another baby. An image of infant William, when she had decided to give him up, flashing through her mind

"She's fine, Dana. See?", Nurse Jo walked around to Scully and dipped the now crying baby down to her face, so she could see that her daughter was fine.

Mulder had sat back down on the rolling stool and moved it closer, to Scully and their brand new daughter.

"She looks just like you, Scully", Mulder gushed, as he pushed aside the sweaty, matted bangs and stray hairs from her forehead and placed a delicate kiss on her temple.

"She has your bottom lip, just like William did", Scully smiled wistfully.

Baby Girl Mulder had strawberry blond hair, perfect shaped pouty lips and a little button nose.

"We need to double check that everything is A-OK, but once that's done I'll bring her back and we can take you down to the recovery ward. Okay?", Nurse Jo informed them and handed the bundled up Baby Girl Mulder to a nearby nurse, whose name neither of them knew, who carried her over to the plastic crib and metal weight machine on the other side of the operating theatre.

"Yeah, she still looks just like you though. How are you feeling?", Mulder asked.

"Weird... but OK", Scully blinked.

The Doctor began stitching her up, which meant more pulling and the first pangs of pain.

"I'll be right back...", Mulder replied and kissed Scully's forehead again, before following the nurses over to the corner of the room and watched as they measured and weighed their daughter. Her little legs kicking and squirming, eyes blinking against the bright lights above her and he felt that feeling, the same feeling he had for Scully... that he would protect her from whatever might harm her in the years to come; be it aliens, the government or some overly grabby teenage boy.

"Does she have a name yet?", inquired the Nurse whose name Mulder now saw, was Claire.

"No. Not yet", Mulder said.

Mulder was distracted with counting her tiny fingers and toes and being completely awestruck by the power of women, and of Scully in particular. She had risked a lot to become a mother again and to give him a daughter.

They had given Scully a private room, in the busy recovery ward.

Scully came back from the bathroom and carefully hopped back into the most comfortable bed she had ever had the pleasure of recouping in. Mulder covered her bare legs with the hospital regulation knit blanket and placed their daughter in her arms.

"I love you", Mulder said and kissed them both on the top of the head.

The heart that had been broken by the loss of his sister, father, mother and grown son had all but been fixed by the new life they had created, which was now nestled against Scully's always open heart and warm chest.

"I love you too", Scully smiled up at Mulder, and then back down to their daughter... who still didn't have a name.

"I think she needs a name, don't you?", Mulder said as he looked, adoringly, at both of them. His girls.

Scully women were a force to be wreckoned with, and he was proud to have them in his life.

"We could honor your sister, Samantha. If you want?", Scully answered.

"Or Melissa?", Mulder suggested.

"What about Grace?", Scully thought out loud.

"Hmm. I like it but it's not perfect. She deserves a name that's perfect for her..."

And just like that... it came to him. A memory, of a rainy night... long ago in Roswell, New Mexico.

"Hope. I think we should call her Hope. What do you think, Scully?", Mulder asked, not wanting to push a name on her, if it wasn't one she liked.

"There's always Hope, Mulder. I like it, a lot" Scully said, as she used her fingertips to trace Hope's lips, and brushed them across her sweet, freckled cheek.

Hope was wrapped up in a white baby blanket and Scully gave her back to Mulder, who cradled her in his strong, loving and protective arms.

"Hello, Hope. We've been waiting a long time for you", Mulder looked down at perfect and beautiful face of his daughter.

"Hope Margaret Mulder", Scully suddenly said.

"Nice. Thank you", Mulder was startled and then nodded his head.

"For what?", Scully was confused.

"For giving me... and us, the chance to be parents again", Mulder said honestly.

"You're welcome. And thank you, too", Scully replied and grinned at up Mulder.

And in that moment, Mulder vowed to protect her better than he had Scully and William. Vowed he would never leave, and that if another obstacle did happen to come along... they would fight it together, as a family.


End file.
